Abstract

Storms have been impacting coastal morphodynamics directly due to its intensifying effects over the years. Climate change has caused an exponential impact on storms and therefore morphodynamic changes in the coasts. A specific land that has constantly been threatened is Dauphin Island, a barrier island in Alabama. Over time, it has experienced a total land loss of 100 ft of shoreline over the past of 3 decades and an overall 16% land loss of the island due to the intensifying effects of storms due to a changing climate. In this study, we use Hurricane Ivan as an example. In order to analyze the effects of a future scenario we incorporate the effects of sea level rise. Therefore, we compare three different scenarios of Hurricane Ivan including its current scenario in 2004, current scenario with sea level and future scenario with sea level. Increases in storm surge include wind speed, minimum central pressure and translation speed. These are all factors affecting the breaching in the barrier island. We aim to show how climate change can intensify the effects of hurricanes and impact coastal erosion by comparing a future climate with current climate. We use Hurricane Ivan in Dauphin Island as a case study.

Thesis Completion

2021

Semester

Spring

Thesis Chair/Advisor

Mayo, Talea

Degree

Bachelor of Science (B.S.)

College

College of Engineering and Computer Science

Department

Civil, Environmental and Construction Engineering

Degree Program

Civil Engineering

Language

English

Access Status

Open Access

Release Date

5-1-2021

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